Highlights and images for 22 October 2025

“It is not always easy to have in-depth technical and scientific expertise for all the different topics under discussion, in particular for small delegations,” a delegate noted, following another busy day of deliberations at the 27th meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (SBSTTA 27) of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).

Following consideration of the agenda item on biodiversity and health in an afternoon plenary session, SBSTTA 27 completed the first reading of all items on its agenda and initiated discussions on conference room papers (CRPs), starting with matters related to the work programme of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES).

Want to dig deeper into today's talks? Read the full Earth Negotiations Bulletin daily report.

In discussions on biodiversity and health, many delegates highlighted challenges related to the integration of biodiversity and health into national policies and the implementation of the Global Action Plan on Biodiversity and Health, calling for capacity building, technical and scientific cooperation, technology transfer, and the mobilization of resources for implementation. Many welcomed the Quadripartite collaboration on One Health and suggested continuing work on the development of integrated science-based indicators, metrics, and progress measurement tools on biodiversity and health.

During consideration of the CRP on the IPBES work programme, delegates disagreed on whether to “take note of” or “welcome” the Nexus Assessment, with some emphasizing that the assessment was the result of a request to IPBES by the Convention. They further discussed whether to “encourage” or “invite” Parties and other actors as appropriate, to promote and implement a synergistic and holistic approach to biodiversity issues in line with the Nexus Assessment. Noting these and other remaining disagreements, SBSTTA Chair Jean Bruno Mikissa (Gabon) mandated a small informal group to continue discussions with a view to reaching consensus.

The rest of the day was devoted to deliberations in contact groups, which met in the morning and evening to discuss:

• biodiversity and climate change;
• the expanded programme of work on forest biodiversity;
• risk assessment and risk management of living modified organisms; and
• the strategic review and analysis of the programmes of work under the Convention in the context of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.